A Fantastic and Epic Film

Rating: 8/10 (15 July 2013)

From start to finish this film delivers fantastic action combined with a good story. Some have criticized it for being too much like Transformers where we get tons of epic action but no story and characters we don't care about. Well this movie does have the Transformers type action however the story is much more deep and the characters you actually care about.
The acting in this film whom is lead by the fantastic actor Charlie Hunnam is wonderful. Hunnan finally gets a big lead in a major summer movie after years of doing a great job of acting on a popular television series Sons of Anarchy. Idris Elba another great actor works with Hunnam a lot in the movie and these two make their scenes so much better. They have so much chemistry between them that it adds something special to the film. There are tons of side characters that as well do a fantastic job of making this film one of the more well acted films of the year.
Guillermo del Toro does an amazing job directing this film. The film while mostly CGI is beautiful on the big screen. This film truly comes to life right in front of your eyes and it is so wonderful to see. The shots are perfectly done and no shaky cam to worry about here. It is known del Toro was against transferring this to 3D however I'd say in my opinion the 3D adds a lot of depth to the film that makes it even better. The IMAX 3D experience of this film is also one to behold as with the giant IMAX screen(whether real or fake IMAX) you are immersed and makes the film so much better. This film should truly be watched on the giant IMAX screen.
Travis Beacham and Guillermo del Toro wrote this film together with Beacham writing the story. The writing for the most part is fantastic and fast paced meaning it moves by quickly. For the most part. And here is where one of my complainants about the film come in. I'd say after about twenty minutes or so of non stop action it cuts off to build up story. Which is perfectly fine and needed. However the film drags for too long and it is a buzz kill. Thankfully it is not over the top long and the film does pick back up and from there to the finish does not stop.
Music is a very important part of a film. I'm a lover of scores for films. I love listening to every soundtrack for nearly all blockbusters like this and many others as well. My only other complaint about this film is that to me the soundtrack is not that memorial. At times it is very good but I'd say for most of the film you will forget about the score and thus not leave the theater remembering anything about it.
In closing this is a fantastic epic summer blockbuster that while at times can slow down is overall a must see epic joyride filled with amazing action scenes that you will leave remembering for some time. The IMAX 3D experience adds so much to the experience and simply waiting to watch this movie at home would be a mistake as the experience of the giant IMAX screen is amazing. 8/10